On Mon, 1 Nov 2004 19:46:51 +0000 Jenny Hopkins hopkins.jenny@gmail.com wrote:
On Mon, 1 Nov 2004 18:33:44 +0000, Chris Green chris@areti.co.uk wrote:
How easy is it nowadays to migrate an Access application to Linux?
I'm getting rather fed-up with trying to maintain an Access 97 application on Windows 2000 and migrating to Linux might be the answer.
Do you mean an equivalent application? I've moved a work MS Access database to Linux by putting the back end in postgresql and rewriting the front end in html/php and serving it over our intranet, it's taken me a long time to do it though. Worth the effort and I only have one front end to maintain. Is this what you mean?
jenny
I think what jenny did is the best way as it reduces the maintenance and dependencies to a minimum, Dependency is one of the most profitable ideas of a software companies as it allows for lock in to technology. Its a lot of work to migrate an Access MS/Office integrated application, because a typical Access Database application uses VBA Scripting language which you can read but is not similar to any Linux language, and many of the components of office as libraries.
I think star office is going down the same route and includes some tools for doing the same as what you have but still your application is Dependant on a moving product which may or may not have enough scripting functionality and may or may not be less work to maintain than one based on MSOffice.
My feeling is that you should use a good standardized/open language such as Python/Perl or what ever open rapid development tools you know, and use a GUI appropriate to the problem. Databases on Linux are not my specialty, although I do feel mySQL is suitable for most MSAccess applications, although SQLServer is a far better product and I'd be tempted to replace applications based on this with something other than MySQL.
If you have the source code it will be easier than writing the application the first time if you can read the stuff in a debugger.
Otherwise I suggest that you consider it as hard as rewriting the application.
Owen